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Ghana

GH

West Africa

Ghana is home to 8 documented ethnic groups in West Africa — led by Akan (~48%), Mole Dagbon (~17%), Ewe Ghana (~14%), Ga Dangme (~8%). This page blends their phenotype and demographic data into one weighted reference: skin tone, facial features, hair texture and build, drawn from published census and ancestry sources.

Demographic Composition

Composition weights are derived from self-identification in published census and demographic surveys. Each row links to the source ethnic-group atlas page.

Ethnic groupWeightSource
AkanAkan47.9%Ghana Statistical Service 2021 Census; Akan (~47.9%, ~15M+ of ~31M+ total). Niger-Congo / Kwa source population. Sub-groups include Ashanti, Fante, Akwapim, Brong-Ahafo, plus other groups. The Akan ethnogenesis traces to the historic Akan kingdoms (Ashanti Empire ~17th-19th c. CE)
Mole DagbonMole Dagbon16.9%Ghana 2021 Census; Mole-Dagbon (~16.9%); Voltaic source population, predominantly northern Ghana. Includes Dagomba, Mossi-related, Mamprusi, Nanumba, plus other groups
Ewe GhanaEwe Ghana13.7%Ghana 2021 Census; Ewe (~13.7%); Niger-Congo / Kwa source population, predominantly Volta Region of Ghana. Cross-border with Togolese and Beninois Ewe
Ga DangmeGa Dangme7.5%Ghana 2021 Census; Ga-Dangme (~7.5%); Niger-Congo / Kwa source population, predominantly Greater Accra
Gurma GhanaGurma Ghana6.4%Ghana 2021 Census; Gurma (~6.4%); Voltaic source population
GuanGuan3.7%Ghana 2021 Census; Guan (~3.7%); Niger-Congo source population
GrusiGrusi2.6%Ghana 2021 Census; Grusi (~2.6%); Voltaic source population
Ghana OtherGhana Other1.3%Ghana 2021 Census residual; includes Mande, plus other groups

Ghana Phenotype Profile

Ghana has an Akan-plurality demographic structure (~47.9%) with substantial Mole-Dagbon (~16.9%), Ewe (~13.7%), Ga-Dangme (~7.5%), and other smaller groups. The country has been one of the most demographically and politically stable Sub-Saharan African polities since independence 1957.

A descriptive view, not a claim about individuals

This page shows a weighted aggregate of phenotype observations across the Ghana population, based on demographic composition from published census and ancestry sources. Phenotypes within any country are far more varied than the aggregate suggests; this is a descriptive reference, not a deterministic claim about any individual. For source-level detail on individual ethnic groups, see the constituent atlas pages linked below.

Methodology Notes

Composition weights derived from Ghana Statistical Service 2021 Census.

See full project methodology →

Primary Sources

  1. 1.Ghana Statistical Service. Population and Housing Census 2021. Accra: GSS; 2022.
  2. 2.McCaskie TC. State and Society in Pre-Colonial Asante. Cambridge University Press; 1995.
  3. 3.Wilks I. Asante in the Nineteenth Century: The Structure and Evolution of a Political Order. Cambridge University Press; 1975.
  4. 4.Tishkoff SA, Reed FA, Friedlaender FR, et al. The genetic structure and history of Africans and African Americans. Science. 2009;324(5930):1035-1044.
  5. 5.Owusu-Ansah D, McFarland DM. Historical Dictionary of Ghana. 4th ed. Scarecrow; 2014.

Other countries in West Africa

Aggregate phenotype references for neighbouring West Africa nations, weighted by demographic composition.

Browse all West Africaethnic groups & countries →